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The Malazan Re-read of the Fallen - House of Chains, 2,3,4

A flood of updates from Amanda and Bill on their re-read of House of Chains:

We’ve had brief, very brief, mention of the Forkrul Assail in earlier books — Mappo called them “the least known of the Elder Races” in Deadhouse Gates. Beyond that we simply get their name a handful of times. This is our first real introduction to them then, and it’s a good idea to keep in mind their speed, their deadliness (think of what we’ve seen Karsa do), and their focus on “peace,” which as Amanda pointed out sounds a lot like a synonym for death. Not to mention of course their endurance and will — think of Calm entombed under the rock all those years and still sane. Or at least, seemingly so. (and we will meet Calm again). Consider her hand: “chewed, clawed and gnawed at; though, it seemed, never broken.”

I got as far as Toll The Hounds in my own re-read, and was then sidetracked by George Martin's Dance With Dragons (which I'm 45% into), but I expect to return to this remarkable series in a few weeks. I saved Book 10 for the re-read, and while I anxious to see how everything plays out, I think a part of me just doesn't want to read it; a part of me just doesn't want it to end.